Artificial Future
by Zanessasaur14
Summary: No one really knew how the life of Gabriella Montez was. Everyone thought she had the perfect life, but deep down, only she knew that she was fake. Her smile and laughters were just cover-ups. She kept her emotions and her dreaded past hidden from everyone else. But what happens when Troy Bolton steps in to try and fix her? The same guy who made things worst.
1. Chapter 1

They say love is forever. More than just a word that is easily said. They say love is more than a feeling of care and sacrifice. It is a promise, that when you start falling, someone out there would catch you right on time, before you break. It is when every touch makes you feel safer than you already are because you just know that they are going to hold you forever. When your shattered pieces can be rearranged by silence because nothing else matters at that moment except having one another. Being in love is when the sun will never set. But is it the truth?

No. Not to her.

She has never experienced any of it, and she's not planning to.

She believes, she knows, that it hurts. The actual pain is incurable. Love is just keeping hope alive, till the moment you find out that you are left with nothing at the end of the tunnel. The rapid beating of the heart is just classified as sexual attraction and nothing more. It is when everything that's said are just broken promises to keep the other person going, only to be left alone when satisfaction ends. It is when every second chances are blown away because they had let the other fall to oblivion. When the cuts are left to bleed and never to be healed.

Being _in love_, is just a made up feeling for physical satisfaction.

As an only child, 17 year old Gabriella Montez has always been preserved. She kept her life to herself. Not ever does she want people to find out anything about her. That however, was never easy, being the most noticeable teenager throughout the whole East High. Within her academic _years_, she was always known as the girl with 'brains and beauty'. As the one who always ended up ranking first in all her subjects, she would understand where half of the label came from, but the beauty? That, she did not acknowledge. To her opinion, she looked like every other brunette with long ebony curls and coffee brown orbs. The intelligence was just an added bonus. There was nothing special in Gabriella Anne Montez. And thats what she tells herself everyday.

Each week was a continuous pattern for her that was memorized easily.

On the weekdays, Gabriella would walk to school with her backpack draped on her shoulder, only to be stopped halfway by her best friend who refused to let her walk just a few miles to school - even though she was sure her best friends motives were to discuss about the scholastic decathlon team that they have been participating in for almost two years now.

Yes, Taylor Mckessie wasn't your typical student. Her dark skin and short hair - which cuts right above the shoulders - were not hard to miss once you walk through the halls of East High. She was one of the few - along with Gabriella herself - who would bring textbooks and fiction novels around so that they could read in the library every recess. Throughout the whole school, Taylor and Gabriella were the only ones who actually enjoyed doing homework and would prefer working on projects individually, except if the other potential partner were one another. But when it was time to relax, she would rather spend hours researching about some facts - in relation with the topic - that are going to be studied a few weeks prior to the actual class discussion whereas Gabriella would spend her weekend reading 500 paged novels, regardless of the genre. It's true that her best friend was one of the few who actually worked hard to ace her classes, and who would be disappointed in getting a grade lower than 90 while she, herself, would just have to read the textbook once and is still able to maintain an average of 95 in all of her classes because of the photographical memory in which she possessed. They were both so different in many aspects, yet both girls couldn't have it any other way.

Her class schedules have never changed for two years since she started attending East High. She would always have two or three classes with Taylor each day, including physical education, which occurred once a week, was her most dreaded subject. Both Taylor and herself had warmed up to the idea that they could only maintain an average of 80 on that particular subject, and that was without slacking off.

At twelve o'clock, both girls would have lunch, along with the entire student body. They would sit at the furthest end of the cafeteria along with their friend who joined the drama club as a composer, Kelsi Neilson. The three would chit-chat about random topics while they finish up and head back to their respective classes.

Every Saturday and Sunday, the three girls would hang-out at different locations, which was mostly at each others houses, if they do not have plans. Gabriella would call it somewhat of a 'girls night' because that was the only day that she could really spend time with her friends without homework. They would gossip about the events that happened in school, or discuss the 'inner school activities' as Taylor would've called it.

Once the week finished, the routine would repeat itself.

Gabriella Montez lived a simple and scheduled life. She has been living in this pattern for a few years, after she moved to Albuquerque, New Mexico because of the job offer that her mother accepted without her consent.

No one would've guessed it, by the way she is living, but she has unresolved issues as well. Just like any other teenager, she has her hidden secrets. It was just more complicated than others. Nothing differentiates her, other than the fact that her problems were bigger than others. It has destroyed her inside and no one, as far as she knew, could ever come close in fixing it.

By her looks, everyone would've guessed that she lived a flawless life, with the ideal family and the perfect boyfriend that every girl had dreamed of. But none of those were true if you knew who she actually was. Every part of her existence was a mistake that wasn't suppose to happen. Her parents had her at a very young age. Her mother, Maria Montez, was sixteen when she found out she was pregnant and had told Jose Montez, her biological father, about it the week after she knew. Having her resulted the pair to drop out of school and leaving their planned future. When Gabriella was born, Jose Montez ended up working three jobs to support his family after both his and Maria's parents stopped giving the teenagers financial support as they were against the idea of the couple having their own baby. This went on for four years, until both Jose and Maria can't handle the pressure and decided to take it out on each other. They did not part ways - and Gabriella thought this was because of her - but they would frequently have an intense argument that would sometimes lead to violence.

_The sound of shattering glass was heard throughout the household in the middle of the night. Three year old Gabriella Montez awaken from her slumber in an instant. She clutched her stuffed bear that she had received for her birthday, got out of bed and creaked the door open to investigate the unpleasant echoes that could be heard along the second floor halls. Even though she was three, it took no hesitation that the screams were coming from the kitchen downstairs. _

_Walking down the hall, she reached the stairwell and sat down on the steps. She had a clear view of her parents who were occupied in the kitchen along with the pieces of broken glass were scattered around the wooden floor. She clutched her teddy in fear every time something was thrown violently by both individuals. The sight of the madness was unbearable for a young toddler. _

_"What do you expect me to do!" The booming voice of her father was heard. _

_"You're just gonna give up on her like that Jose?!" Her mother replied, with disbelief._

_The now nineteen year old father took a step forward, "Don't you dare say I don't care about her! I've been working my fucking ass off for this family just so that we can live like normal people with a roof above our heads!"_

_"Nothing has been normal since I ended up pregnant with your child!" Her mother hissed with tears glistening her brown orbs._

_"You think I want this? I had a future! Everything was planned out! I was gonna get a well-paid job until I have money to buy a ring so that I could propose to you after college, did you know that?! You would be a lawyer, I would be a business-man and we would start our own family together after! But you ended up pregnant even before I got the job offer that would earn me the money to buy you the ring." The last sentence her father said was a faint whisper, but she could hear the disappointment in his tone._

_Hearing her father's brief speech, she could see that her mother was speechless. Tears were streaming down her cheeks uncontrollably as she placed both hands on her mouth to suppress the whimpers. Her mother dropped down to the ground, on her knees, and sobbed while shaking violently. _

_She watched from the banister as her father went over to the woman who was bawling on the ground and held her close tightly into his embrace in a soothing manner while whispering softly into her ear - in which Gabriella knew that the words said would calm her mother down -. The image was too much for Gabriella herself to handle. Seeing both her parents in this state was too emotional, and knowing that she was the one who caused the argument, made it even worse. _

_So when she has heard enough, she went back to bed, failing to hear the last sentence that her father spoke out after he gave a soft kiss to the woman he was holding._

_"We'll get through this, I promise." _


	2. Chapter 2

Every girls life was full of decision making, but for the one and only Gabriella Montez, her life seems to have taken it to another level. It wasn't a matter of what outfit would fit her best or what color matches her skin tone. She had hoped that those questions -that came out of fiction novels- were in her head because it seemed easier to find solutions for those problems as she was one of those girls who did not really care for her appearance. The self-debate that she had were always regarding herself as an individual that most would deemed untrue.

Yet here she was, standing so closely to her wardrobe in search for anything she thought was decent enough to make an acceptable first impression for her last year in East High.

"Come on, it's just the first day of school Gabriella…" She whispered to no one in particular as she frantically went over each hanger, scanning each dress in a hurried fashion when a mint floral dress came to view.

The dress slightly showed a hint of cleavage as it was lowly cut - but not too much to get her scolded at on the first day of school. The garment had fallen just above her knee and it clutched somewhat loosely along her petite flawless figure, yet it was enough to show off seductive curves. It wasn't that she was trying to impress anyone in particular - exclude the blue eyed boy that every girl swooned over because he was practically incomparable to other guys. She has always wanted to feel good in her skin and this dress did her good. It's not too bad to be self-confident once in awhile, especially on the first day of her senior year.

Slinging one strap of the backpack on her shoulder purposely, she gripped the strap nervously and went down the hall towards the staircase. As she went down each carpeted steps, she could faintly hear the sound of the television increase. Her father was watching a basketball game with a newspaper at hand, while drinking his morning coffee - his usual routine. She could hear the sizzling sound of the pan just from the living room, knowing that her mother's morning routine was always cooking a batch of bacon and eggs for her father.

"I'll head out now!" Gabriella shouted just enough so that her mother could hear her say her goodbyes without having to interrupt her cooking.

Jose Montez glanced towards the front door, "Have fun at school princess."

"Don't be out so late." Her mother's voice rang through as she went out the door and to the front porch, seeing a well-known red convertible already parked in front of her house such that it restricted her to walk to her destined destination. When she went in the vehicle, she was greeted with an impatient driver that she has not seen for three months because of the holiday.

"You know Darbus won't be pleased with tardiness, especially on the first day of school." Her best friend's voice called out jokingly as she began driving since she had arrived fifteen minutes ahead of schedule due to first-day jitters.

Gabriella rolled her eyes playfully, "I missed you too, Tay."

"So are you going to finally tell me what happened with you and loverboy over the summer that would make me want to kick him where it hurts?" Taylor asked curiously but somewhat jokingly prior to the brief conversation they had a few days ago after she had just gone back from summer vacation - and partly because being nosy was her nature.

This hit her like a ton of bricks. She felt a pang in her heart. Even without mentioning who it actually was -without a doubt- Gabriella knew who she was referring to. All the bittersweet moments came flooding back into her memory as she recalled the way his fingers gently caress her cheek with such delicacy as if she was fragile because deep down he knew that she really was. She remembered his simple touches that made her addicted and drawn towards his embrace. As cliche as it all might sound in her head, it was the exact replica of a fairytale that was almost _perfect. _But to be fair, that was before he broke her heart. It slipped her mind that the guy who she had spent the whole summer with attended East High aswell.

She chuckled half-heartedly, "I never thought you would ask that question."

"Then we're on the same page." Taylor concluded as she parked her car in the lot and shut the engine, marking the end of their conversation for now. "Come on, the bell will ring any second now."

He wouldn't label himself as the 'King of East High' but that was what he was. Any girl would beg to be in his presence; as cocky as that sounds, it was an undeniable fact. His ocean-blue orbs and dirty blonde hair was the ideal type for most girls - especially because those traits matched his whole facial feature with such justice. However, even though he could have a different girl every week, he wasn't the type to do one night stands. Regardless of his undoubtable reputation, it was true that Troy Bolton was a real gentleman - inside out. He was somewhat picky when it comes to choosing the right 'companion' and that personality came off as irritating to those bimbos who voluntarily throw themselves at him whenever they have the chance; just so that they could feel superior among the student body, which was not an attractive trait for him. It was undebatable that Troy Bolton - East High's basketball captain - was an addiction to others.

Just like any other, he had an addiction of his own that was not to be taken lightly. The moment he picked up a basketball at the age of three, he was completely intrigued to the point where he would not put it down for hours. The birthday present given from his father - who was East High's basketball coach - started his obsession over the physical activity. His whole sanctuary was decorated based on the sport; that was how bad it was. Maybe she should've rethinked the decision of spending all that money on basketball-themed furnitures and sporty room decors. His mother had gotten used to the fact that the two's idea of a fun Sunday night was just binge watching multiple basketball games with analyzation while eating junk food. However, his father was the basketball coach of the school he was currently attending so it did not matter if he liked the game - he would end up playing it anyway. Good thing he was a natural.

Nonetheless, he had never shared his addiction - not until Gabriella Montez walked into his life and fucked everything up.

From good looks to skill - Troy Bolton had it all. He had never wanted more and wouldn't expect anything less. However, he would gladly sacrifice all that for a girl who he grew fond of during the summer break; and that was what he wanted no one to know. The popular image that he built up effortlessly would have been thrown away like yesterday's garbage since it was somewhat an unwritten rule that _a jock should never even engage in a conversation with a 'nerd' unless it involves academic purposes._ A rule that he knew was ridiculously unnecessary, but followed anyway due to society's wishes.

Even so, why was he casually leaning against the white painted pillar, unconsciously waiting for a certain brown-eyed brunette to walk through the hallways; towards the main doors?

He has been leaning nonchalantly for about fifteen minutes, anticipating for the figure to step inside the building; he was growing impatient. It was a relief that no one had bothered to ask why he has been standing there for what seemed like eternity.

".._.completely irrelevant_."

The familiar melody ripped him off his train of thought in an instant. Such melodious tone was accompanied by the petite figure that he longed to touch delicately once more. She walked alongside the Decathlon Captain, acting quite oblivious to his presence; he could sense the fact that she knew he was watching from a suitable distance.

Gabriella knew that she was being watched - rather, observed. She wanted to neglect his presence, yet temptation took over. Coffee browns met with a pair of cyan blues for a brief moment with such love, lust and _regret_.

Much to his dismay, the short moment was interrupted by the school bell which made her and the rest of the student body alarmed - rushing to their respective classes as swiftly as possible. He was the only one left in the hallway, taking his time as he walked to his homeroom nonchalantly. Of course, he was going to get scolded at.

When he had entered the room, it was no question that every female - exclude the teacher - turned their heads towards him in curiosity of who had interrupted the firstlesson of the day. Everyone but one brunette who kept her eyes glued to a personal notebook; seemed to have been doodling whatever was in her mind with such focus.

"Nice of you to join us, Mr. Bolton." The sarcastic voice that belonged to the drama teacher called him out as he walked in the class that was already in session.

"It won't happen again ." He said calmly and took the only available seat - upfront.

"As I was saying… your senior year will be filled with such finesse that I am certain you will find very exciting for your fertile young minds. Taylor Mckessie, your class president will assist if you have any other further questions..." She rambled.

Chad Danforth - none other than the co-captain of the basketball team and Troy's best friend - got his attention from behind as he sat down, "dude where were you?"

"Truck broke down again." He lied believably.

Thankfully, he was late enough to the point that the school bell rang just few minutes after his arrival to homeroom.

"I'll see you during practice." Troy said to Chad as the class was dismissed.

He went on with his day without seeing her for the rest of the school day.


End file.
